L - R: Liz West, Ryan Doran, Aaron Murray, Peter Wallace, Adam Pearson, Freddie Simpson-Cassidy, Bradley Mills

U17 Northern Cup

A tremendous all-round performance from the six members of the Cumbria U17 Boys squad produced a surprise result at the 2011 Northern Cup Competition in Cheadle Hulme, Cheshire. With two days of intensive squash behind them they walked away with the Runners-Up trophy, second to the much fancied Yorkshire team. Four players from the Windscale Squash & Racketball Club – Ryan Doran (Team Captain), Adam Pearson, Peter Wallace and Bradley Mills – combined with two Dalton Squash Club players – Freddie Simpson-Cassidy and Aaron Murray – to overcome other northern county teams. The Cumbrian squad won the first rubber against Merseyside on the first day. Although they did not achieve a similar success against Yorkshire in the subsequent match, some matches were so close that with more fortune a shock win might have been registered. On the second day, Derbyshire and then Lancashire were overpowered by the Cumbrians, who were presented with their award by the Grove Park Squash Club organiser, Liz West.

LtoR James Wilkinson, George Kemp, Adam Gill (all Wigton), Ross Singleton (Windscale)

U11 Northern Cup

Report awaited.

LtoR Ben Hetherington (Carlisle), Ashley Thompson (Dalton), Sam Harrison, Jake Twentyman (both Wigton), Michael Hobbs (Windscale)

U15 Northern Cup

The team in ranking order 1 - 5 was Michael Hobbs, Ben Hetherington, Jake Twentyman, Ashley Thompson and Sam Harrison. Once again the boys in this age group found the going tough. On the Saturday, probably none of the boys found their best form and we went down 15 - 1 to both Cheshire 1 and Merseyside. Sam Harrisson playing at no5 managed to take a game off both of his opponents, but there were only a few close games in the other matches, proving that in this group we are still behind the standard required to be fully competitive. On the Sunday the team performed better, beating Cheshire 2 (13-3) but losing to Durham and Cleveland by 15 -2. Michael certainly played much better on the Sunday beating his Cheshire opponent comfortably 3-0, and taking a game off D&C opponent Joe Dale who won the Newcastle Northern competition earlier this year. Ben managed to beat his Cheshire opponent 3-0 coming though a tight 3rd game. Jake had a good day beating his Cheshire opponent 3-0, and losing to his D&C opponent 3-1 but in a very tight contest that on another day could have gone either way. Ashley managed to take one set on the day going down 3-1 against his Cheshire opponent Hayley Openshaw. Ashley did have a chance to level the game at 2-2, but Hayley proved a spirited competitor just knicking the fourth game 12-10. Sam again just took the one game on the day against the Cheshire 2 ranked no.2 player, although this was then scored as 3-0 to Cumbria owing to Cheshire 2 not having a fifth player on the day. Therefore better than a second team but need to improve to beat the best. Ending on a positive note the boys completely demolished their Pizzas on the Saturday night and I think once again despite finding the competition difficult very much enjoyed the weekend, and being in the company of their team mates and other competitors.

James Bell (Carlisle), Michael Lowrey (Whitehaven), Jonny Honeyman (Wigton), James Worsick (Carlisle), Owen Barrett (Whitehaven), Mitchell Parr (Whitehaven)

Northern cup Cumbria U19's

At this years Northern cup Cumbria U19's had a 6 man team playing against teams from Durham & Cleveland and Lancashire on Saturday, and Northumbria and Cheshire on Sunday. Owen Barret from Whitehaven played in 3 of the 4 matches and in his first match he played at No3 winning 3-1 against J.Wass from D&C, in his second match he played at No4 against D.Rigby from Lancashire winning 3-1, he lost the first game 11-9 only to storm back and take the next 3 games comfortably. He sat out the Northumbria match but came back in at No4 for the match against Cheshire winning 3-0 against A. Openshaw-Blower who was the only girl the team came up against. Rumours that Owen had asked for this opponent were unfounded. Jonathon Honeyman from Wigton played in all 4 matches all at No1 unfortunately he came up against 4 extremely high quality opponents. First up was D.Hockburn of D&C, a player who is making rapid strides up the national rankings, Jonathon losing 3-0. Next up was J.Tomlinson from Lancashire; this was a match a neutral would have wanted to watch as both players gave everything with Jonathon just losing out 3-2. Against Northumbria Jonathon decided to have his monies worth again although this time winning 3-2 against C.Windscheffel, against Cheshire Jonathon played C.Longman and after a really tight match with 2 of the games going to 13-11 Jonathon lost 3-1. James Bell from Carlisle, making a welcome return to the county scene, played in 3 of the 4 matches all at No5. Against A.Mcfarlane from D&C James failed to settle into the match losing 3-0, he sat out the Lancashire match but came back strongly on Sunday winning 3-0 against M.Hope of Northumbria and 3-1 against L.Leach of Cheshire, in both matches he constantly drove the ball past his opponents, dominating the points in a great display of power squash. James Worsick from Carlisle played in 3 of the 4 matches, James played at No4 against C.Mcintosh from D&C losing 3-0, in the match against Lancashire James, playing at No5 came up against D.Watkin, after twice coming back from a game down James unfortunately lost the match 3-2. Against R.Ridgway of Northumbria James moved back to the No4 position and produced some great composed squash to win a very tight match 3-2, James sat out the match against Cheshire. Mitchell Parr from Whitehaven played in 3 of the 4 matches all at No3 sitting out the match against D&C. Mitch won 3-1 against F.Street from Lancashire, 3-0 against B.Waring from Northumbria and 3-1 against D.Jacobs from Cheshire. As always Mitch gave the watching crowds something to talk about in all his matches as his shots ranged from the ridiculous to the sublime to the outstanding to the "what just happened" Michael Lowrey from Whitehaven played in all 4 matches all at No2. In his first match Mike played M.Robinson from D&C winning 3-1, his second match saw him play E.Fairhurst from Lancashire losing 3-0. On Sunday Mike played S.Graham from Northumbria winning 3-0 and in his last match he played B.Bettley from Cheshire who he has met on many occasions for the county and in national competitions, after Mike won the first game easily Blake picked his game up and in the next 2 games both players constantly retrieved the ball when the point seemed lost thus producing some really long rallies, in the end Mike's great fitness got him through winning the games 13-11 and 12-10 for a 3-0 victory. A special thanks to Peter Worsick for his help over the weekend and all the lads for making it run smoothly. A special mention to Michael Lowrey and James Bell who, at the ripe old age of 18 are having to retire from the county juniors. Results Durham & Cleveland Lost 3-2 Lancashire Lost 3-2 Northumbria Won 5-0 Cheshire Won 4-1 Cumbria finished third in the 5 team tournament

Daniel Harrison who was unbeaten in each of his games.

left to right, Back row , Dan Askew, Jackson Holliday, Daniel Harrison Front row, John Kemp, Ross Singleton

Cumbrian Boys U13 Victory in the Northern Cup, 1st May 2011. Prestbury.

The Cumbrian boys U13's team came home victorious on Sunday evening after winning the Northern Cup Competition in Prestbury, Manchester. The boys comprising of Captain Jackson Holliday, Daniel Harrison, Dan Askew, John Kemp and Ross Singleton set off to a flying start with a 5-0 win over Yorkshire in their opening game this included 4 out of the 5 games being won 3-0. Next up was Cheshire and again the boys won 4-1 overall with Jackson playing at 1 being two games down at 10-12 in both games against Carleton Oldham he pulled back to win the next 3 games. John Kemp at 4 had a tight match with Oscar Beach and although he lost 3-0 there was only two points difference in each game. The last game of the day was Northumbria and the Cumbria boys again won 3 -2 Jackson got beaten by Michael Mattimore 3-0 and Ross Singleton got beaten 3-2 in a close fought game. After a good nights rest and a look at the scoresheet and realising we could take the title with yesterdays work they carried on their good form and again played excellent squash beating Derbshire 5 -0 with 4 of the games won 3 - 0 and one 3-1. Last but certainly not least was Durham and Cleveland the boys knew this could seal their victory and gave it their all, winning 4-1 overall. Jackson had a fantastic game with Oliver Walls winning one game 14-12 and another 16-14 it showed the level of squash that we were producing but Jackson dug in to win the fourth game 11-5 and seal the title. Dan Askew wasn't able to win his fifth game after working so hard to win the first two games narrowly missing out on a couple of points in the next three. Daniel Harrison at number 2 won four out of his five games 3-0 and played quality precise squash over the weekend. Ross Singleton at number 5 was a super asset not forgetting he is still only 10 years old and has a long way to go in this squad. John Kemp again won 4 out of his 5 games 3-0 and produced some great squash. Dan Askew won 4 out of 5 games 3 of which were 3-0. All in all it shows the level of squash we have coming through in Cumbria and it was nice for the boys to put Cumbria on the map. Well done.

Full results.

Cumbria Under 17 Girls Trophy Final; March 20th 2011. Leicester Squash Club.

Our County girls under 17 team made the long trip down to Leicester Squash Club, for this year's Trophy final, not quite as far as last year (Beaconsfield, just outside London) but not far off, with their trusty band of supporters as well as chauffeurs. The girls were up against Leicestershire, Buckinghamshire and Hampshire, these last two also last year's opponents, so it was going to be a tough day of squash for the girls, with three hard games. First up were Leicestershire, and after we had beaten them in the qualifier for this final, the girls were hopeful of a good result. The Leicestershire order was changed slightly from previously (!) and they pulled off a narrow 3-2 win, with only Megan Singleton (5) 3-0, and Luisa Mc Gregor (3) 3-1, both Windscale, winning their respective games. Jessica Winder (1) lost 3-0, Hannah Crichton (2) lost 3-1, both Windscale, and Victoria Watson (4) lost 3-1, from Penrith. Tie lost to Leicestershire 3-2, (10 games to 8). After a quick bite to eat it was back on court against Buckinghamshire. Another defeat, unfortunately with perhaps the closeness to finishing eating and playing having a bearing on this match, in fact one of the girls felt physically sick, having to have a lie down and sleep following her game, with two of the others feeling unwell also. Only Jessica Winder won for Cumbria 3-0, with the others picking up games, but not enough to win the tie. Tie lost to Buckinghamshire 4-1, (12/7). Last match was against Hampshire, who in their first two games had swept all before them beating Buckinghamshire and Leicestershire, and led the points table. The Cumbrian girls were up for the fight and determined to finish with a good result, and see where it got them. With no ill effects now apparent the girls were unstoppable, with wins for Megan 3-2, Victoria 3-1, Hannah 3-1 and Jessica 3-0, with Luisa just missing out 3-2. These winning points (19) were the highest team points scored on the day by any team, and lifted Cumbria up to third place in the final on 34 points, whilst Hampshire being held to only 7 points denied them the title. Tie won by Cumbria 4-1, (14/7). Leicestershire won the Trophy with 40 points, second were Hampshire on 37 points, Cumbria were third on 34 points and Buckinghamshire were fourth on 32 points. This completes the Cumbrian Girls exploits again for this year, once again many thanks to our very generous sponsor Thomas Graham & Sons Ltd, as without his continued support of all the County junior teams, competitions like this would not be possible.

L to R - Paul Bell (coach), Jonny Honeyman (Wigton), Owen Barrett (Whitehaven), James Worsick (Carlisle), Michael Lowrey and Mitch Parr (Whitehaven)

U19 Inter County Stage 2, Sunday January 30th 2011

A long trip to Chesterfield in late January was the Cumbrian u19 squash team's reward for finishing runner up in the stage 1 matches. That had been a very close result in which the team finished second. The same five lads made the lengthy journey to play the hosts, Leicestershire and Durham & Cleveland. The prize would be a place in the England Squash Trophy finals and the team was optimistic particularly with the support of Paul Bell, recently appointed ES coach to North Lancashire and Cumbria. All six matches between the four teams finished 3-2, Cumbria being pipped 2-3 in each of their three matches. Leicestershire ended up winning the day by just three points after winning their three matches. Cumbria's man of the day was Whitehaven's Mitch Parr who was undefeated, conceding only one game in three matches. Mitch was unplayable, his opponents were rapidly demoralised as nicks flowed from his racket time and again.

Coach's report - Download

L to R - Megan, Linda Winder (coach) Jessica, Louisa, Hannah, Victoria.

Cumbria County Girls Storm to Victory

Windscale Squash Club had several players on county duty last weekend, with the most success coming in the under 17 girls category where Cumbria blew away their opposition to win in fine style. With Cheshire hosting the match at Grove Park, Cheadle, nr Stockport, they also faced Lancashire and Leicestershire, with a place in the "Trophy" final at stake for the top two teams. Cheshire was first and Megan Singleton at No5 won 3-0 at a canter. Louisa McGregor, No3, was nervous in the first game then settled to win 3-1. Victoria Watson (Penrith) played No4 and blasted her way to a 3-0 win. Jessica Winder at No1 ran into stiff opposition and never really got into the match losing 3-0. Next door Hannah Crichton at No2 was also having a tough match but came through to win 3-2 to give Cumbria a 4-1 win. Lancashire was up next and soon in trouble as Megan, Luisa and Victoria had easy 3-0 wins. Once again Jessica found a tough nut to crack, and although looking a bit better lost 3-1. Hannah despite recovering from a cold was embroiled in another thriller. 2-0 up, her rival dug in and levelled the match, before Hannah pushed again to win 3-2, and Cumbria got another 4-1 win. Leicestershire also had two wins and things did not look good for Megan as she went 2-0 down quickly, however "Meg" was to put in the performance of the weekend, and battled her way back to record a fantastic 3-2 victory. Victoria lost her first game, but came back to win 3-1. Louisa and Jessica both faced quality opponents in the form of the Taylor sisters, but both played their best squash and pushed them hard before going down 3-1. With the match tied 2-2 Hannah had all the pressure, but handled it well, as after a winning a tight first game, she went on to win 3-0 and secure her third win and gain Cumbria their third match victory.

Top left to right: Emily Davis, Molly Tweddle

Bottom left to right: Katie Twentyman, Rachel Tang

Girls under 13 Inter County Competition November 2010.

Cumbria were represented in Stage 1 of this seasons Inter County Competition at Pontefract by Molly Tweddle (Wigton), Rachael Tang (Workington) and Katie Twentyman (Wigton). Cumbria took along a 4th player Emily Davis (Carlisle) who played in all the matches, but her scores weren't included as the teams consist of only 3 players.

Download full report and results.

Left to Right - Ross Singleton (Windscale), Daniel Harrison (Whitehaven), Jackson Holliday (Windscale), Daniel Askew and John Kemp (both Wigton)

Boys U13 Inter County Squash Sunday 24th October 2010.

Cumbria travelled to Stockport.

Team members in seed order Jackson Holliday, Daniel Harrison, Daniel Askew, John Kemp and Ross Singleton.

First up for Cumbria was Lancashire although Jackson and Daniel Harrison had very tough games against strong seeds the boys produced some excellent squash with some super rallys making the games close, Daniel Askew beat his opponent 3 - 1 and new team members John Kemp and Ross Singleton both won comfortably 3 - 0. Giving Cumbria an overall win 3 - 2.

Next up was Cheshire with the boys again producing some super squash and beating them 3 - 2.

Last of the day was North Wales and the boys were on a roll all the boys won 3 - 0 apart from no 1 seed Jackson who was 2 games down but fought back to win the next three games 11-4 to win 3-2 giving Cumbria an overall win. This put Cumbria in top position on the day and the performance of the boys was outstanding giving them a well deserved win.

LtoR - Owen Barrett (Whitehaven), Jonny Honeyman (Wigton), Michael Lowrey (Whitehaven), Mitch Parr (Whitehaven), James Worsick (Carlisle).

Boys U19 Inter County Squash Sunday 10th October 2010

Cumbria's under 19 boys squash team travelled to Jesmond in Newcastle to play Northumberland and Durham / Cleveland in the first round of inter county matches in what turned out to be a very competitive day's squash. They finished 2nd after losing to winners Northumberland in a very tight match. Durham and Cleveland had already been beaten by Northumberland in the first match. The match was won quickly with wins for James Worsick, Jonny Honeyman and Mitch Parr. New county champion Michael Lowrey found England ranked Danny Hockburn too strong at one while Owen Barrett had a five set marathon before losing 9-11 in the fifth to Matthew Robinson. It was possibly this match that may have cost the team an overall win as Owen had put everything into it. Against Northumberland we were soon 0-2 down with three set defeats for both James and Mitch. Wins for Jonny and Michael levelled the match 2-2. It was then down to Owen to win the match for Cumbria. Although he took the first set 11-5, Owen seemed to get tired and his much improved opponent Cole Windshefel took advantage of this winning the next three sets, so clinching the match for the hosts.

Full results (download)